The Freshman
by Farisya MJ
Summary: Based on the game Choices by Pixelberry Studios, Santana is in a dilemma to choose Puck, Artie or Dani as her lover. Who will she pick? Will it be the famous football player, the rich nerd studying Literature or a party-girl who always brightens up the mood in the suite? Find out in the fanfic!
1. Chapter 1 : hartfeld University

**Chapter 1 : Hartfeld University**

It's the first day of college, and Santana walks across a bustling campus. "Ugh. This suitcase weighs like a thousand pounds. Maybe I shouldn't have brought so much—" As Santana rounds a corner, she smacks right into a guy jogging by! "Whoa!" The two of them are both knocked on their feet. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay?" Santana pleads. A tall, dashing young man in red shirt answers, "My ego's a little bruised. If the other guys on the football team saw me get tackled by a pretty girl, they'd never let me forget it." He offers Santana a hand and helps her up. "I'm Puck by the way. Nice to meet you." "Nice to meet you too. I'm Santana" "Santana. For some reason, that rings a bell. So, are you okay? Do you need help?" "I'll be fine..my hand is just a little scraped up." "Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" "Well, you could help me with my bag" Puck looks around and notices Santana's things all over the place. "Whoa, I didn't notice that!" Puck picks up several clothes and suddenly touches a black lace bra. His face turns red and Santana quickly grabs it into her suitcase. "I'm sorry I didn't mean to—" "No, no it's okay. There, everything's back in the bag. Now, to the suite". Suddenly, a blonde girl who looks like she just came out of Mean Girls came over and interrupted their conversation. "Puck! There you are! Don't forget the Kappa house mixer tonight!" "Oh..Quinn. Hey. I'd love to go, but I promised my roommates I'd hang out with them." "Too bad..I promise you'd have a better time with me.." Annoyed, Santana interrupts their conversation, "Uh, we're kind of in the middle of a conversation.." "It looked to me like you were just leaving." "Actually—" Just then, Quinn drops her iced coffee at Santana's feet, splashing it all over her. "Seriously?!" "Oops. I'm so clumsy!" Puck notices Santana's outfit and quickly dashes to find some napkins. As soon as Puck is gone, Quinn leans in close to Santana. "Just so you know, Puck is mine." "Oh, he's your boyfriend?" "Not yet. But he will be." "Oh yeah? Hate to break this news to you blondie, but Puck was clearly way more into me" "As if that would be possible!" Puck runs up with a stack of paper napkins. "This is the best I could do." "It's a good start… I'll just find my dorm and change. See you around, okay?" Puck curves a wide grin and replies, "You can count on it"

A few minutes later, Santana comes to a suite. "This looks like the place" She knocks on the door, which swings open to reveal a beautiful living room, complete with a kitchen. "Wow! This place is huge!" She is welcomed by a sweet voice from behind. "Aaaaahhhhh! New roomie! You're finally here! …and covered in coffee?" "Haven't you heard? It's the hottest look for fall." "Oh yeah? Well you're definitely pulling it off. Seriously, you're super pretty." "Thanks…You're super hot!" "Oh, wow.." Dani blushes and looks away, a slight smile curving her lips. "Too much?" "I'm gonna go with a no. But you probably want to get out of those coffee-stained clothes. Let me show you to your room!" Dani leads Santana through the suite. "Wait..do we have this whole place to ourselves?" "Ha! I wish. In case you haven't heard, the school's in a housing crunch. This is a six-person suite! We'll be sharing this place with one other girl…and three guys!" "That's….awesome! It'll be like having five best friends right off the bat!" "Just friends? They say the number one rule of freshman year is not to hook up with your roommates. But I don't always play by the rules." "I'll keep that in mind." Dani leads Santana to a room. "Here's your room. Hurry up and change, then we can hit the Welcome Week Fair! Oh, I almost forgot! Every year, they set up a massive slip 'n slide in the middle of the fair! It looks super fun…and it's a great excuse to wear a bikini!" "So..are you going to do it?" "Definitely. You only get one chance to make a first impression. Sliding through the quad in a sexy swimsuit is a great way to make an entrance. I'm gonna go change! Be back in a sec, okay?" Dani runs back to her room to change and Santana grabs her bikini out of her suitcase. "What do you think?" asks Santana while proudly wearing a bikini. "I think I'm roommates with the hottest girl at Hartfeld!" "You don't look so bad yourself" "Ready to make a splash?" "Let's do this!"

Outside, dozens of people are manning booths for various organizations. Onlookers cheer as freshmen coast down the slip 'n slide! "Here goes nothing" Dani gets a running start and jumps onto the slip 'n slide! The crowd goes wild. "Woo! I'm loving that confidence!" Rachel yelled after the glorious jump. Tripp blurts spontaneously, "Marry me!" And then it's Santana's turn. She sprints across the grass and dives head-first onto the slide. "This…is…college!" As Santana reaches the end of the slide, she hears people talking about her. Logan, a guy from the football team mumbles, "Who's that girl? She's like…a slip 'n slide angel!" Puck answers, "That's Santana! She's the one I was telling you about" "No fair. How come beautiful girls never knock me over?" Just then, Dani runs up with a couple of snow cones and hands one to Santana. "I don't know what flavor you like, so I just got rainbow." "Thanks!" Santana answers cheerfully. "I've never seen someone so happy to get a snow cone." "I'm smiling because..SNOW CONE! Hahahahah nah, just kidding! This morning, I ran into this super cute guy, and I just overheard him talking to his friend." "I'd love to meet him" Santana looks over to where Puck had been standing, but she doesn't see him anymore. "I guess it'll have to wait" "I'll look forward to it". After taking a few minutes to dry off, Santana and Dani check out the fair.

"Let's see here…a capella? Nah. Can't sing. Student government? Nah. Don't care." Just then, Santana spots a familiar face at the Kappa Phi Sigma booth. "Quinn " Santana's expression changed as she sees the blonde who was flirting with Puck. "Santana. Could you not stand so close to our tent? We don't want people thinking Kappa Phi Sigma would associate with someone like you" "Wow, Santana is this girl serious?" "Unfortunately" Santana grits her teeth as she tries to think of a way to get back at Quinn . "Time to move along" Rachel interrupts, "Are you sure, Quinn? I mean, look at her bikini…it's pure hotness! Aren't we basically honoured if she signs with us?" "Rachel, would you please stop undermining me?" "Don't worry, Quinn. I'm not interested in joining any sorority that associates with someone like you." "That's what I thought. Buh bye." Quinn smirks at Santana and sips an iced coffee through a straw. "I see you got a new coffee, Quinn" Santana accidentally spills the coffee on Quinn causing a loud growl to escape from her. "How dare you!" "This is when I say, buh bye!" Santana walks away and flips her hair right in front of Quinn. "Wow, Santana! That was so cool! I can't believe you did that to her" "At this point, you do get the picture that she's the one who spilled coffee on me just now, right? And she's also the one who pulled the super cute guy away from me. Wait, I haven't told you how I met the super cute guy. It's okay, you got my point right?" "Wow, no wonder you were on fire! Now I feel bad for not doing something to her as well. I gotta say, I think Ms Queen Bee was completely jealous of your look" "Is that what happened?" "Totally. She knew you were a threat, and she lashed out. I can't believe it..your first day and you've already got a nemesis. You're so lucky!" As they both prepare to head back to their dorm, Santana looks across the quad. A well dressed guy caught sight of Santana. Dani notices the look on Santana's face. "See something you like?" "You mean that guy? He's not my type." The guy looks over at Santana. "Okay, he's definitely checking you out..and who can blame him? You look super cute in that bikini" A moment later, the guy walks into a nearby building and disappears from view. "Hey, it's getting dark, and I just got a text from our roommates! They're all home!" "Sounds like it's time to head back to the suite"

A few minutes later, Santana changes back into some regular clothes. As the sun sets, she walks into her dorm living room and finds a girl standing in front of a painter's easel. "Hey, you must be Santana. I'm Tina" Santana reaches her hand forward "Ah! Careful! I'm covered in paint, and I don't want to ruin your outfit!" "Oh, you're an artist?" "Wow..no, I'm a long way away from calling myself an artist. I guess I'm…a girl who paints? Anyway, the guys are all up on the roof. I'll catch up to you later." "No way! You're coming with us, Tina..you can finish your painting later!" Dani interrupts. "I guess I'm close to done. What do you think, Santana?" "Give me a second to fully appreciate your work" Santana looks at Tina's painting, her eyes swarms on the details put in the picture. Dani asks, "So? What's your review, Santana?" "It looks amazing Tina! I was just wondering, are you the girl in the painting?" Tina blushes and looks to the floor. "Maybe..I have always liked fairytales" "This is a picture of your dream. You long to live in a fairytale, just like the girl in your painting. She looks in the mirror and sees a reflection of a princess with magical creatures. I gotta say..it's really beautiful. Not only because you have amazing skills, but the purity of this dream, translated into a picture. A pure dream that has not vanished by the cruelty of the world" Dani looks at Santana in disbelief. "Did you really thought of all that within seconds?" "Well that's just my interpretation. Of course Tina here knows what it really means" "I have no words, I just feel like you just saw through me." "Lucky guess" Santana winks at both Dani and Tina. "So are you ready to join us now, Tina?" "Sure, but only if I get to pick the music" "Your wish is my command. Now let's go!" The three girls head up the stairs. "Nice. We got an amazing view." Tina ushers Santana as she was the only one who has not met any of the boys. "Ready to meet the guys? This is.." Santana looks up and sees the guy she knocks over earlier. "Actually..we've already met" "Puck? You're my roommate?"

A/N : Hey guys..this fanfic is based on a really cool game called Choices. Do check the game out if you're interested! It's very similar to Episodes. In case you have never played Episodes, do check it out too. You can choose how to react in the game and it will affect the storyline. I find the storyline very interesting and thought of writing it as a fanfic. Hope you enjoyed the first chapter!


	2. Chapter 2 : Rooftop Games

**Chapter 2 : Rooftop Games**

"Puck? You're my roommate?" "That's why I recognized the name Santana! Nice to see you again..roomie!" Completely overwhelmed, Santana answers, "Yeah, great to see you too." "So..what about this roof, huh? You can see the whole town from up here" "Yeah! So beautiful.." Another guy comes to Santana and interrupts the conversation. "Beautiful? I can only assume you're talking about me" He grins to Santana. Startled, she replies, "I wasn't.." He laughs, "I'm just messing with you. I know, I know, I can come a bit strong. The name's Kurt, but you can call me your number one fan cause you are straight-up crushing that look." "Nice to meet you..It sounds like you know fashion!" "Well, one of my ex-boyfriends was a model, so..kind of?" "I'd say that makes you our resident fashion expert" "Please promise me that means we can go shopping together sometime." Dani joins in, "Ahhh! Only if I get to come too!" Santana smiles, "sounds like fun". Tina looks around. "I feel like we're still missing someone" "There he is!" At the far end of the roof, Santana spots a guy sitting by himself, looking out at the stars. "Mike! Enough with the shy nerd act! Get over here and talk to our new roommate!" The Asian guy joins in, "Oh..hey there. I was just trying to see if I could spot Cassiopeia. The constellations are just a little different here than back home in California." Tina looks interested. "You're into stargazing? I used to do that all the time when I was little. "Oh really?" Mike looks surprised and amazed at the same time. Suddenly Kurt interrupts. "Santana, sidebar." Kurt pulls her aside. "Okay, just to fill you in, my boy Mike has a massive insta-crush on Tina. And I'm making it my mission in life to get those two crazy kids together. Are you with me?" "You want me to play matchmaker with you? But I barely even know them" "Since when has that ever stopped anyone? Do you even watch 'The Bachelorette'? It looks like I'm going to have to do this myself. Just try not to ruin this for me. As Santana heads back to the group, Kurt pretends to trip, and accidentally pushes Tina into Mike. "Mike! I'm so sorry, I… er… thanks for catching me." "Any time! Uh.. I mean.. any time you fall into me! Not.. any other time!" Mike stutters himself out of embarrassment. Kurt looks at Mike and wonders, 'This could take a while'. Puck breaks the silence. "So..what now?" "I think this is supposed to be a party, right?" "Maybe we could start with some drinks?" Puck suggests. "Uh, Santana, I've got a bottle of wine down in my room. Want to help me go get it?" Dani asks. "Do we really need two people to grab a bottle of—" "Just come one!" As they walk down, Dani stops right in the middle of the living room. "Okay. Confess. You're into Puck, aren't you?" "Duhh he's the super cute guy I mentioned before" "I'm just trying to warn you, I'm pretty sure he mentioned something about a girlfriend." "What? You mean Quinn ?" "That bossy sorority girl we ran into at Welcome Week?" "Yeah. When we first met, she was, like, Exorcist-level possessive of him." "No, the girl Puck mentioned wasn't Quinn . It was someone from back home." "huh. Now I'm curious. I need to know if Puck is single. Obviously I'm interested in him" Dani flashes a grin. "I'm pretty sure I know how to get him to spill his guts." Santana curves a smile. "oh yeah?" "Oh yeah. Watch and learn, my young apprentice." "Aren't we pretty much the same age?" "Details, details. If we play our cards right, you'll get to ask Puck anything you want."

Back on the rooftop, Dani opens the bottle of wine and starts pouring it into glasses. She leans over and whispers to Santana, "This is step one". Dani hands Puck a glass of wine. "heh. I'm more of a beer guy, but thanks." "Want a drink, Santana?" "Wine? No thanks" "So responsible, I'm impressed" Mike and Kurt pass out the glasses and all of them clink their glasses together. Puck starts, "To an unforgettable freshman year. Cheers, everyone." "I'll drink to that!" Kurt continues. Tina wonders then, "So…what now?" "I'm glad you asked, Tina. I think it's time for us to paly some Truth or Truth." "What's that?" Dani explains, "It's Truth or Dare..except you have to pick truth." Kurt is not impressed. "No dares? So no one's running naked through the quad?" "All in good time. We've got a whole year, together, after all." "Fair point. Since it was your suggestion, why don't you answer the first 'truth', Dani?" "Oh, why don't we start with someone else? Like…Puck, for example?" "Nice try! Go ahead, Santana. Ask her something!" "Okay, Dani..Tell us about your first kiss" "Ugh, you just had to go there, didn't you?" "You don't have to answer if you don't want to." "No, no, Rules are rules. My first kiss was in middle school with this guy named Aaron. We were at a party, and we were playing 'Seven minutes in Heaven'. And Aaron had just eaten a jalapeno on a dare. "Hot" laughs Tina. "Yeah, really hot. When I came out of the closet, I was blushing, and everyone thought I liked him, but it was just the stupid pepper! I haven't gone near guys or jalapenos since" Mike says, "That's too bad..cause jalapenos are bomb" "I'll take your word for it. Who's next?" Soon, it's Kurt's turn to ask a question. He puts on an exaggerated thinking face and scratches his chin. "Hmm..what to ask, who to ask? Got it! I want someone to tell me their ultimate fancy!" Everyone pauses for a while. "Sorry, ultimate fantasy. This is some strong wine!" "or you're a total lightweight" beams Dani. "Says the girl who's gone from sitting on the couch to lying on the ground after two glasses" Puck adds. "What? It's comfortable.." Santana asks further, "So, Kurt, whose 'ultimate fancy' did you want to hear about?" "You know what, I already forgot! Who should I ask, Santana?" Santana looks around and signals to Puck. "Okay, Puck. I want to know your ultimate fantasy." "Wow. Let's see. Nothing too crazy. Like, I'm a fireman, and I save a girl from a burning building. And then she's really grateful. You know what I mean." Dani nods with a meaningful smile, "Oh yeah, we definitely know what you mean" "Interesting. I guess we should be careful not to leave any candles burning up here..or maybe we should leave them burning" Santana laughs. "That part is up to you, I guess." The game continues as Santana waits for her opportunity to ask Puck a question. "Ugh, don't freak out, but..I've never actually kissed a guy" admits Tina. Kurt was shocked! "Wait, not even one? I've kissed like, twenty!" "On the same day?" "Very funny, Mike. Although..three of them were on the same day, yeah" They moved to another person and a new confession. "…and the best part is, I never get caught!" reveals Dani. "Okay, you're officially the coolest person I've ever met!" says Kurt. Santana asks, "Who skinny-dips in a public pool?" to which Dani replies, "Heros, Santana. Heroes" Kurt continues the game. "Okay Mike..I dare you to kiss" "You can't dare me to kiss anyone. There are no dares!" "Oh yeah, I forgot"

Until finally, Puck exclaims, "Looks like it's your turn to ask me, Santana" Dani leans over to Santana and whispers while she is thinking of a question. "Try not to be obvious, Santana" "Okay, Puck, do you have a girlfriend?" "Dang, Santana going straight for the serious topics!" Mike blurts out. "It's okay, Yeah..I was in love, once, Throughout most of high school, actually." Dani was surprised with the answer. "So you dated the same girl through all of high school?" "Basically. Hurt pretty bad when she broke it off, but those were good times" Santana asks further, "Sounds like she was pretty special to you" Puck opens up. "She was. I wasn't going to go into this, but..my ex's name is Nicole and she's the first person I have ever loved. We were together for three years. But when she decided to go to another college, she dumped me on the spot." "That's so harsh" says Tina sympathetically. "To be honest, I'm still not over her. And it'll probably be a while before I am. That's why I promised myself that I'm just going to have fun here. No serious relationships for at least a year!" Santana shares her thought on Puck' decision. "That's smart. And it wouldn't be fair to the next girl you date if you're still not over your ex." "Exactly. Listen, enough about me. Can I ask Santana a question in return?" "What do the rules say, Dani?" Kurt interrupts, "So far it seems like the rules are whatever Dani wants them to be." "Ask away, Puck" supports Dani. "Okay, Santana, what's your take on love?" "My take on love? I'm open to love, but I'm not desperate" "Seems wise. Best to just let it happen" "Exactly". Dani smiles as she looks at the two of them. "Interesting. Very interesting". A few rounds of drinks and questions later, Tina looks at her phone to check the time. "Well, I've hit my embarrassment quota for the night, so I think I'm going to turn in" Dani interjects. "What? It's so early!" Mike answers in disbelief, "It's two in the morning.." "Exactly! Honestly..I am a little tired. But I just want to say this is the most fun I've ever had. "Me too" said Mike. Puck adds, "It's going to be an amazing year. I'm so glad I have you guys as suitemates" "And on that note, I'll see you in the morning" end Dani. Kurt continues, "I actually think I'll head to bed, too. Besides, we've got plenty of nights like these to look forward to, right?" "I guess you're right" answers Dani.

As Dani and the others leave the roof, she shoots to Santana and Puck one last, meaningful look. Puck saw that and wonders, "What was that look all about?". Santana covers up, "Uh, nothing! Just..one of those looks, I guess!" She gazes out over the starlit campus, shivering in the night air. Puck approaches her from behind. "So..not tired?" "Not yet. And I want to savour this, you know? Our first night together as a suite". "It all starts here. You nervous?" "A little. You?" "Oh, I'm terrified. But it's a good kind of terrified. And as long as you're around, I'd say there's a lot to look forward to." "Puck, I feel exactly the same way" "I know we just met, but..I feel a connection with you. And maybe it's not cool to say that, but I just had to get it off my chest." "I'm glad you did". "Really?" "Really." "Listen..I know I must be throwing out mixed signals. The truth is, I'm really not looking to start anything serious. But here, in this moment with you. Things just feel..right" Puck moves closer to Santana and takes her hand, cautiously at first. When Santana doesn't pull away, he interlaces his fingers and smiles down at her. "Puck, hold me?" "Come here.." Puck wraps his arms around Santana and she leans into him. "You know, this does feel..right". Santana tilts her mouth up to meet Puck her lips melting together as Puck pulls her closer. When she finally breaks away, Puck stifles a laugh, his blue eyes crinkling at the corner. "What the hell are you laughing at?" "I'm not laughing. I'm just..I'm happy I guess". "Me too. That was nice." Santana smiles and looks down shyly, her finger tracing figure-eights on Puck's forearm. "Well, I guess it's time we get some sleep". "yeah, it's getting pretty late. Maybe we can talk more later? Or, you know.." "I'd like that. Goodnight, Puck" "Night Santana".

The next day, Santana wakes up to the sound of her phone ringing. She gropes in the sheets for her phone and finds it beside her pillow. "Ugh..what time is it?" Although her eyes were so heavy, she forces herself to look at her phone. "Four missed calls? From my parents? What the.." She walks down the hall and steps out into the chill morning air to take the call. "Mom? What's going on? Why did you guys call me four times?" "Santana, there's something I have to tell you". "Did something happen? What's wrong?" "It's your father. He..he lost his job. We can't pay for your tuition!" "But..but I haven't even started classes yet!" Santana was quiet for a moment. She can not digest the news that she just hears. After composing herself, she speaks to her mom again, "Mom..don't worry I'll try to figure something out" "We're so, so sorry about this, Santana. We're going to make this right, okay? Your father just needs some time to find a new job. We love you!" "Yeah..I love you too". Santana hangs up the phone. "This can't be happening. What am I going to do?"


	3. Chapter 3 : The Assistant

**Chapter 3 : The Assistant**

After Santana gets off the phone with her parents, she meets up with her friends in the kitchen. "Santana? Is everything okay?" Dani asks with a very worried look on her face. "I..I don't think so. My family is broke. What started off as the best week of my life just turned into a nightmare. Kurt interrupts, "We can't lose you! We've..we've bonded!". Santana looks at her suitemates. "I guess there's only one thing to do now. I have to find a way to stay. I'm not going down without a fight!" "Hell yeah! That's the spirit!" Kurt is certainly happy with Santana's decision. Mike then suggests, "Maybe you can get…a job?". Tina however disagrees. "No offense, but tuition runs like 50k a year here. Minimum wage isn't gonna cover that." Puck shows a concerned expression too. "There's gotta be some way you can stay. I mean, I'm here on a football scholarship." "I don't think I'm exactly what the football team is looking for." "Maybe not, but I'm sure there are other scholarships available." Dani agrees. "Not a bad idea, Puck. It might be worth a trip to the financial aid office to check it out!"

A few minutes later, Santana and Dani head to the Financial Aid Office. Dani goes straight to the problem and speaks before Santana has the chance to do so. "Hi there! My friend just realised she's super poor and needs scholarship!" Bewildered, Santana exclaims, "Dani!" "What? It's true. Besides, if we're trying to get this done fast, we've got to cut right to the chase. Ms Pilsbury calmly attends to them. "Let's see here, any special skills?". "Actually, I'm a star athlete!" Happy with the answer, Ms Pilsbury asks further, "Really?! What sport do you play?" "All of them!" "Ms Pilsbury starts to look gloomy. "You're going to have to be more specific, honey". "Oh well, in high school I played basketball, soccer and volleyball. And softball. Also, I started an intramural dodgeball league. "I guess you weren't kidding". Dani looks at Santana, amazed again with the secrets she unfolds. "I had no idea you were such a jock, Santana". "Unfortunately, it looks like all of our athletic scholarships have already been distributed." Frustrated, Santana sighs. "There has to be something." "Well, there is one thing. But I'm not quite sure you'd be up to it." "Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence". "It's nothing personal. It's just, well, we do have one research assistant position open. It would pay for your tuition, plus room and board. But, it's for Professor Sue Sylvester." Dani interrupts, "Professor Sue Sylvester? The famous author? _The Cheerleader's Squad_ is one of my favourite books ever! Working for her would be amazing!" "Spoken like someone who has never met the lady. Professor Sue Sylvester has taken over a dozen assistants in the last five years. None has lasted more than a week." "Until now" "That's what they all say.." "The thing about me is, I'm special". "Believe me, honey. The real world doesn't care how special you are. And Professor Sue Sylvester certainly won't. Good luck. You'll need it."

Dani and Santana reach an office at the end of the Faculty. "I think this is the place". Santana takes a deep breath. "Time to make my first impression". Suddenly the door opens and Dani and Santana is greeted by a man in suit. "Hello?" "You! You're that guy I saw across the quad the first day. I..er..wait.. Are you a student?" "Guilty as charged. I'm Sylvester's..well, protégé, I suppose. She helps me with the play I'm writing, I help her with the odds and ends while he's between assistants. For a second, I thought you might mistake me for another lecturer. What gave away?" "The fact that you're not old." "Hey, I could just be an old guy who looks good for my age, right?" "I never said you looked good." "So you don't think I—" Their conversation is interrupted as a voice shouts from down the hall. "Artie! I've lost my latest pages again! Get in here and help me find them!" "I'd better get on that. Here's hoping you stick around. I'll let the professor know you're here". As Artie leaves, a notebook falls from his backpack onto the floor. Dani surreptitiously snatches it up and reads the cover. "Looks like someone dropped the script for his play!" "Should we run after him? I'm sure he'd want it back". "Yeah, but if we did that, we'd never get to read it!" Dani eagerly flips through the pages. "Blah blah, class disparity, blah blah, working conditions in Victorian London..oh here's something good!" "Dani, I'm not sure Artie would want you looking through that". "This is getting juicy. Apparently Artie has a creative imagination." "What are you talking about?" "I'm not sure I should show you, it might warp your innocent mind." "Dani!" "This is hot stuff. Tell you wjat, one time offer. You and I can do a little line reading. What do you say?" "Come on..don't read it" "Aw. You're no fun. Anyway, I should probably get going. Good luck with Sylvester, okay?"

As Dani leaves, Santana hears a footstep approaching. "Who is making all of this racket out here?!" Artie follows the professor as he storms up to Santana. "We..we were practically whispering" "Professor, allow me to introduce your new assistant, Santana Lopez" "Assistant. What a joke. Have you ever assisted anyone before, Santana?" "I mean..not professionally. But I like to think of myself as helpful." "My last assistant thought she was being helpful. Right up until the moment she 'helpfully' lost a flash drive containing three months' worth of work! And then there was the assistant before her. He thought it would be helpful to hum while he dusted my office. That cacophonous melody was rattling around my head for weeks! I couldn't write a word on my new novel! And then there was the last guy. He had a distracting sense of fashion! So many stripes!" "How terrible for you" "Terrible is an understatement. Do you think Faulkner had to deal with such distractions? His family afforded him the peace and quiet of their barn! He got quiet solitude. All I get are assistants." "I understand, but I won't be like your other assistants." "And why exactly is that?" "I'm different because I'm a fast learner. Everyone makes mistakes, but I never make the same one twice!" "Weren't you listening to a word I said? Around here, one mistake is grounds for immediate termination! Get out!"

Santana turns and takes a step toward the door. The she stops and looks back at Professor Sue Slyvester. "No." "No?" "I won't get out. I'm going to stay. Yesterday was incredible. I made friends faster than I ever have before, I may even met the love of my life. I can't just walk away from this. I know in my heart that this is where I need to be. And I'm not going to let some angry old woman ruin that!" "Listen to you. Reactive. Angry. Entitled. You're a caricature of your entire generation!" As she says the words, Professor Sylvester stops for a moment, and then.. "Which actually makes you exactly the person I'm looking for after all." "What?" "I'll explain later. For now, I'll accept you as my assistant on a trial basis. Starting immediately. In fact, I have a pressing matter that I need you to take care of tonight. Let's call it your first test." "Anything! I'm on it!" Santana is ready than ever to receive her first test. Sylvester walks over to her bookshelf and pulls out a massive, dusty old novel. "This is my second novel. _A Winter in July._ It needs to be digitized by tomorrow morning." "No problem! I'll scan it right away!" "Actually..no. I need it formatted as a text document. You'll have to transcribe it by hand." "But..it's like a thousand pages!" "In that case, you'd better get to work."

Santana heads back to her suite, feeling devastated and already lost half of her hopes of staying at Hartfeld University. As she enters the suite, Kurt welcomes her back. "There's our roomie!" Mike continues, "I heard from Dani that you got a research job". "Let's celebrate! The roof garden is calling my name!" Dani is definitely a party-girl. "Guys, there's nothing to celebrate. Sylvester is crazy. She wants me to transcribe her thousand-page novel tonight. Even if I work all night, I'll only be able to pound out a couple hundred pages max." "Typing at a hundred words a minute for eight hours, assuming 250 words per page, you'd generate 12 pages," calculated Mike. "Wow. Did you just do that math in your head?" asks Tina. "Uh..is that weird?" Santana replies, "Weird? No way! Smart is sexy!" "Really?" "Totally." Tina agrees. "Wow. Uh..thanks". Tina smiles shyly at Mike as Santana winks at Dani and Kurt. "So, back to the matter at hand. What do you think, Mike?" "According to my calculations, one person typing alone can write 192 pages in 8 hours, but if all six of us do this together, we'll have more than enough time to write the full book!" Puck agrees. "Go team! Let's do this thing!" Touched, Santana almost is at a brink of tears. "You..you'd really stay up all night helping me with this stupid project?" Dani answers, "It does mean I'll have to miss several fabulous frat parties tonight, but I'm in." Tina also agrees to help. "Eh. I didn't have plans anyway." Puck speaks up for the rest of their suitemates. "You belong here, Santana. With us." Kurt pumps up the energy. "I'll start a pot of coffee. It's going to be a long night!" "Let's write some pages!"


End file.
